Perhaps the greatest contribution of the Upanishads is to open our eyes to what it really means to be a human being. The constant concern of the sages is to reawaken us to the sacred nature of the environment, of living creatures, of one another, and finally of our own inner reality. This exalted vision of the human person has been echoed by the anonymous monk of fourteenth-century England who has left us one of the world’s greatest mystical documents, the Cloud of Unknowing:
How can this be? How can this miniscule, fragile body whose size in the Universe is beyond ludicrous be, or contain, such importance? Because, the Upanishads and all the world’s great mystics insist, we are not that fragile body but that which causes it to move, breathe, and be alive: consciousness. In this Upanishad we have one of the four mahavakyas or “great utterances” that later tradition teased out as the sum and substance of their teaching: prajnam brahma, “All reality is consciousness.” And the same consciousness is the life of all: thus we have the explanation for both the sanctity and the unity of life.
#Spiritual #wisdom #spiritualbooks
Beneath you and external to you lies the entire created universe. Yes, even the sun, the moon, and the stars. They are fixed above you, splendid in the firmament, yet they cannot be compared to your exalted dignity as a human being. . . . There is nothing above you in nature except God himself.
How can this be? How can this miniscule, fragile body whose size in the Universe is beyond ludicrous be, or contain, such importance? Because, the Upanishads and all the world’s great mystics insist, we are not that fragile body but that which causes it to move, breathe, and be alive: consciousness. In this Upanishad we have one of the four mahavakyas or “great utterances” that later tradition teased out as the sum and substance of their teaching: prajnam brahma, “All reality is consciousness.” And the same consciousness is the life of all: thus we have the explanation for both the sanctity and the unity of life.
#Spiritual #wisdom #spiritualbooks
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🌿 7-Day Spiritual Evolution Program
Day 1 – Awareness of Breath
Theme: Centering in the present moment.
Practice:
✨ You can extend this to 10–15 minutes once you feel comfortable.
Reflection : “What did I notice about my mind when I watched my breath?”
Day 1 – Awareness of Breath
Theme: Centering in the present moment.
Practice:
🌬️ Guided Breath Meditation (5–7 minutes)
1. Find Your Seat
Sit comfortably with your back straight but relaxed. Rest your hands on your lap or knees. Gently close your eyes.
2. Settle In
Take a deep breath in through your nose… and slowly exhale through your mouth.
Let your body soften. Allow your shoulders, jaw, and belly to relax.
3. Natural Breathing
Now, let your breath flow naturally. Don’t force it.
Simply notice the inhale… and notice the exhale.
Feel the cool air entering your nostrils… and the warm air leaving.
4. Gentle Focus
If your mind wanders, gently bring it back to the breath.
Use a soft inner phrase, like:
“Breathing in, I know I am breathing in.”
“Breathing out, I know I am breathing out.”
5. Deepening Presence
Begin to count your breaths:
Inhale… (1), exhale… (2).
Continue up to 10, then return to 1.
If you lose count, simply start again without judgment.
6. Expanding Awareness
With each breath, feel your body becoming lighter, your mind quieter.
Imagine each exhale carrying away tension and worries.
Each inhale brings peace, clarity, and calm.
7. Closing
Take three slow, deep breaths.
When ready, gently open your eyes, bringing this calm awareness with you into your day.
✨ You can extend this to 10–15 minutes once you feel comfortable.
Reflection : “What did I notice about my mind when I watched my breath?”
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Day 2 – Gratitude & Abundance
Theme: Shifting focus from lack to wholeness.
Practice:Here’s a Gratitude List of 10 things you can reflect on today 🌸
Reflection : “How does gratitude shift my inner state?”
Theme: Shifting focus from lack to wholeness.
Practice:Here’s a Gratitude List of 10 things you can reflect on today 🌸
1. Breath of Life – Grateful for the simple act of
breathing that sustains me each moment.
2. Health – Even if not perfect, my body allows me to move, think, and experience life.
3. Family & Loved Ones – Those who give me love, care, and a sense of belonging.
4. Friendship & Support – The people who stand by me and bring joy to my journey.
5. Food & Water – The nourishment that keeps me alive and well.
6. Nature – The sky, trees, rivers, and earth that remind me of beauty and balance.
7. Knowledge & Learning – The ability to grow, learn, and understand deeper truths.
8. Shelter & Safety – A place to rest, feel secure, and call home.
9. Spiritual Path – The opportunity to seek truth, peace, and inner growth.
10. This Moment – The gift of being alive here and now.
Reflection : “How does gratitude shift my inner state?”
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Day 3 – Compassion & Loving-Kindness
Theme: Expanding the heart.
Practice:
Theme: Expanding the heart.
Practice:
Loving-Kindness Meditation (Day 3)Reflection: “What happens when I send love to myself and others?”
1) Settle in:
Sit comfortably with your back upright and relaxed. Close your eyes if you wish. Take a few slow breaths. Let your body soften and your attention settle.
2) Start with yourself:
Bring gentle awareness to yourself. You don’t have to feel love perfectly; just set the intention. Silently repeat:
“May I be safe.”
“May I be healthy.”
“May I be peaceful.”
“May I live with ease.”
You can breathe gently after each phrase, imagining these wishes filling your body and heart.
3) Extend to a loved one:
Bring to mind someone you care about—a friend, family member, or even a pet. See them in your mind’s eye and silently offer:
“May you be safe.”
“May you be healthy.”
“May you be peaceful.”
“May you live with ease.”
Allow warmth or kindness to grow naturally, even if just a little.
4) Expand to neutral people:
Think of someone you don’t know well (like a neighbor, a shopkeeper, a stranger). Wish them the same:
“May you be safe. May you be healthy. May you be peaceful. May you live with ease.”
This helps open your heart beyond just those close to you.
5) Include all beings:
Finally, expand this wish outward in all directions—to everyone, everywhere:
“May all beings be safe. May all beings be healthy. May all beings be peaceful. May all beings live with ease.”
You might imagine these wishes radiating out like ripples from your heart.
6) Rest briefly in silence:
Take a few quiet breaths, noticing any sense of calm or warmth. Even if it feels small, appreciate that you’ve planted a seed of compassion.
7) Close gently:
Open your eyes and carry this intention into your day.
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Day 4 – Self-Inquiry
Theme: Knowing yourself beyond roles and labels.
Practice: Self-Inquiry: “Who am I beyond my thoughts?”
Reflection : “What am I not, and what remains?”
Theme: Knowing yourself beyond roles and labels.
Practice: Self-Inquiry: “Who am I beyond my thoughts?”
1) Prepare the Space
Sit quietly in a calm place where you won’t be disturbed for 10–15 minutes.
Take 3 slow, deep breaths to settle your mind.
---
2) Inquiry Practice (Ask & Observe)
Gently ask yourself:
“Who am I, really?”
“Am I my body? My thoughts? My emotions? Or the one who is aware of them?”
“When thoughts come and go, what remains?”
Don’t try to “think” of an answer. Just notice. Let the questions point you toward the silent awareness observing everything.
---
3) Watch Your Mind
Notice any labels that come up (“I’m a parent,” “I’m sad,” “I’m successful”).
Ask: “But who is aware of that label?”
Rest in that awareness.
Even for a few seconds, notice that there’s a you who watches thoughts and feelings come and go, yet remains.
---
4) Journaling Reflection (5 minutes)
After sitting, write down what you observed:
What did I discover about myself beyond my roles?
What thoughts or feelings kept coming back?
Did I notice a sense of space, stillness, or awareness?
---
5) Optional Practice Phrase
During the day, silently repeat whenever you feel stressed:
> “I am not my thoughts; I am the awareness behind them.”
This helps you anchor the insight beyond the meditation session.
Reflection : “What am I not, and what remains?”
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The Buddha came from a royal family in India some twenty-five hundred years ago. He was a prince, named Siddhartha Gautama. He had a very good situation. In the palace he had everything he wanted: good food, good clothes, many beautiful women, a high seat, and a very good position. He was the son of the king, and someday he would inherit a powerful kingdom. That’s very wonderful! But inside, Siddhartha was very unhappy, because he could not understand who he was. He could not understand life or death. He was deeply saddened that all beings must eventually get sick, grow old, and die. This gave him a big question about his own nature and the nature of all beings. “What am I? I don’t know. . . .” At that time in India, the Brahman religion of Hinduism was followed by nearly everyone. But Brahmanism could not give the young prince the correct answer to his burning question. So he was even more unhappy. “Why do human beings come into this world? Why do we eat every day? What am I?” He ate food, but there was no taste. Heard music, but it gave him no pleasure. The beautiful palace became like a prison.
One night, Siddhartha left the palace. He left his family, his beautiful wife, and his infant child, cut off all his hair, and became a monk. Then he went to the mountains. For six years he practiced very, very hard. “What am I? Don’t know . . .” He courageously kept this question with one-pointed determination.
Then one morning, while sitting in meditation under the Bodhi tree, he saw the morning star in the eastern sky. At that moment—BOOM!—Siddhartha and this star completely became one. He realized his true substance. He realized that his mind was the universe—infinite in time and space—and the whole universe was nothing other than his own mind. He realized there is no life and no death. Nothing ever comes or goes. We say that he woke up and attained his true nature. He completely attained human consciousness: he saw that when ignorance appears, mind appears. When mind appears, desire appears.
When any kind of desire appears, life and death, coming and going, happiness and sadness all appear. By completely keeping a don’t-know mind one hundred percent—only go straight, don’t know—the Buddha saw how to completely stop this endless cycle. He attained complete liberation from the eternal round of birth and death in which all beings trap themselves. He completely attained his correct way, he attained truth, and he attained the correct kind of life he should lead. The name for that is enlightenment.
~Siddhartha
One night, Siddhartha left the palace. He left his family, his beautiful wife, and his infant child, cut off all his hair, and became a monk. Then he went to the mountains. For six years he practiced very, very hard. “What am I? Don’t know . . .” He courageously kept this question with one-pointed determination.
Then one morning, while sitting in meditation under the Bodhi tree, he saw the morning star in the eastern sky. At that moment—BOOM!—Siddhartha and this star completely became one. He realized his true substance. He realized that his mind was the universe—infinite in time and space—and the whole universe was nothing other than his own mind. He realized there is no life and no death. Nothing ever comes or goes. We say that he woke up and attained his true nature. He completely attained human consciousness: he saw that when ignorance appears, mind appears. When mind appears, desire appears.
When any kind of desire appears, life and death, coming and going, happiness and sadness all appear. By completely keeping a don’t-know mind one hundred percent—only go straight, don’t know—the Buddha saw how to completely stop this endless cycle. He attained complete liberation from the eternal round of birth and death in which all beings trap themselves. He completely attained his correct way, he attained truth, and he attained the correct kind of life he should lead. The name for that is enlightenment.
~Siddhartha
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Ajahn Chah
We’re born and then we age; we age and then we get sick and die. It’s so normal. But we don’t like it. It’s as if we wanted the breath to come in and not go out; or to go out and not come in. When it comes in and out, out and in, we can live. Human beings and animals have been living right up to the present because fabrications follow their duty in line with their conditions. That’s their truth.
We’re born and then we age; we age and then we get sick and die. It’s so normal. But we don’t like it. It’s as if we wanted the breath to come in and not go out; or to go out and not come in. When it comes in and out, out and in, we can live. Human beings and animals have been living right up to the present because fabrications follow their duty in line with their conditions. That’s their truth.
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"What did you see in Japan, and is there any chance of India following in the
progressive steps of Japan?"
"None whatever, until all the three hundred millions of India combine together
as a whole nation. The world has never seen such a patriotic and artistic race as
the Japanese, and one special feature about them is this that while in Europe and
elsewhere Art generally goes with dirt, Japanese Art is Art plus absolute
cleanliness. I would wish that every one of our young men could visit Japan
once at least in his lifetime. It is very easy to go there. The Japanese think that
everything Hindu is great and believe that India is a holy land. Japanese
Buddhism is entirely different from what you see in Ceylon. It is the same as
Vedanta. It is positive and theistic Buddhism, not the negative atheistic
Buddhism of Ceylon.
#conversation
Swami Vivekananda
progressive steps of Japan?"
"None whatever, until all the three hundred millions of India combine together
as a whole nation. The world has never seen such a patriotic and artistic race as
the Japanese, and one special feature about them is this that while in Europe and
elsewhere Art generally goes with dirt, Japanese Art is Art plus absolute
cleanliness. I would wish that every one of our young men could visit Japan
once at least in his lifetime. It is very easy to go there. The Japanese think that
everything Hindu is great and believe that India is a holy land. Japanese
Buddhism is entirely different from what you see in Ceylon. It is the same as
Vedanta. It is positive and theistic Buddhism, not the negative atheistic
Buddhism of Ceylon.
#conversation
Swami Vivekananda
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ASKING FOR HELP
When you suffer, you may want to go to your room, lock the door, and cry. The person who hurt you is the last person you want to see. Even if he tries to approach you, you may still be very angry. But to get relief, you have to go to the person you love, the one who just hurt you very deeply, and ask for help. Become yourself one hundred percent. Open your mouth and say with all your heart and with all your concentration that you suffer and you need help.
Thich Nhat Hanh
When you suffer, you may want to go to your room, lock the door, and cry. The person who hurt you is the last person you want to see. Even if he tries to approach you, you may still be very angry. But to get relief, you have to go to the person you love, the one who just hurt you very deeply, and ask for help. Become yourself one hundred percent. Open your mouth and say with all your heart and with all your concentration that you suffer and you need help.
Thich Nhat Hanh
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You can't stop the waves, but you can learn to surf
People who don't understand meditation think that it is some kind of special inner manipulation which will magically shut off these waves so that the mind's surface will be flat, peaceful, and tranquil. But just as you can't put a glass plate on the water to calm the waves, so you can't artificially suppress the waves of your mind, and it is not too smart to try. It will only create more tension and inner struggle, not calmness. That doesn't mean that calmness is unattainable. It's just that it cannot be attained by misguided attempts to suppress the mind's natural activity.
It is possible through meditation to find shelter from much of the wind that agitates the mind. Over time, a good deal of the turbulence may die down from lack of continuous feeding. But ultimately the winds of life and of the mind will blow, do what we may. Meditation is about knowing something about this and how to work with it.
~Wherever you go There you are
People who don't understand meditation think that it is some kind of special inner manipulation which will magically shut off these waves so that the mind's surface will be flat, peaceful, and tranquil. But just as you can't put a glass plate on the water to calm the waves, so you can't artificially suppress the waves of your mind, and it is not too smart to try. It will only create more tension and inner struggle, not calmness. That doesn't mean that calmness is unattainable. It's just that it cannot be attained by misguided attempts to suppress the mind's natural activity.
It is possible through meditation to find shelter from much of the wind that agitates the mind. Over time, a good deal of the turbulence may die down from lack of continuous feeding. But ultimately the winds of life and of the mind will blow, do what we may. Meditation is about knowing something about this and how to work with it.
~Wherever you go There you are
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Jiddu Krishnamurti
Intelligence is one thing and knowledge is another.
Knowledge is gathered through experience, through repetition. It is the accumulation which is tradition. Knowledge is always contained in the past. You can add to it or change it but it is a residue anchored in the past. From this past knowledge most activities spring. Without knowledge you cannot catch the bus or put together a computer. Knowledge is necessary.
Intelligence comes about only when there is freedom. Freedom is not to do or think whatever you like and express it or not. Freedom is not something to be taught or learned from a book. There is freedom when there is an understanding of conformity with its action of will and the decision of choice.
There is no freedom when the mind is tethered to any form of belief or conclusion. Freedom cannot be when there is fear, when there is identification with something other than what is. Freedom cannot possibly be when there is the observer and the observed, the thinker and the thought.
Freedom is not a reaction, for all reactions are the continuity of conformity. Freedom is not when there is effort, the struggle between the opposites, which is an endless corridor.
Freedom from the known is the highest form of intelligence. That intelligence can operate in the field of knowledge but it is always free of knowledge. Intelligence is a movement, sensitive, alive, active, ever awake and knowledge is not.
It is the function of the teacher to bring about this intelligence in the student. This intelligence is not personal, it is not yours or mine. When it is yours or mine, or of the community, or of the few, it ceases to be intelligence.
#JidduKrishnamurti #Intelligence #Knowledge #Freedom #Wisdom #Philosophy #Mindfulness
Intelligence is one thing and knowledge is another.
Knowledge is gathered through experience, through repetition. It is the accumulation which is tradition. Knowledge is always contained in the past. You can add to it or change it but it is a residue anchored in the past. From this past knowledge most activities spring. Without knowledge you cannot catch the bus or put together a computer. Knowledge is necessary.
Intelligence comes about only when there is freedom. Freedom is not to do or think whatever you like and express it or not. Freedom is not something to be taught or learned from a book. There is freedom when there is an understanding of conformity with its action of will and the decision of choice.
There is no freedom when the mind is tethered to any form of belief or conclusion. Freedom cannot be when there is fear, when there is identification with something other than what is. Freedom cannot possibly be when there is the observer and the observed, the thinker and the thought.
Freedom is not a reaction, for all reactions are the continuity of conformity. Freedom is not when there is effort, the struggle between the opposites, which is an endless corridor.
Freedom from the known is the highest form of intelligence. That intelligence can operate in the field of knowledge but it is always free of knowledge. Intelligence is a movement, sensitive, alive, active, ever awake and knowledge is not.
It is the function of the teacher to bring about this intelligence in the student. This intelligence is not personal, it is not yours or mine. When it is yours or mine, or of the community, or of the few, it ceases to be intelligence.
#JidduKrishnamurti #Intelligence #Knowledge #Freedom #Wisdom #Philosophy #Mindfulness
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The present moment is inseparable from life, so you are really deciding what kind of relationship you want to have with life. Once you have decided you want the present moment to be your friend, it is up to you to make the first move: Become friendly toward it, welcome it no matter in what disguise it comes, and soon you will see the results. Life becomes friendly toward you; people become helpful, circumstances cooperative. One decision changes your entire reality. But that one decision you have to make again and again and again—until it becomes natural to live in such a way.
#eckhart_tolle
#eckhart_tolle
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Thich Nhat Hanh
If our parents didn’t love and understand each other, how are we to know what love looks like? There aren’t courses or classes in love. If the grown-ups know how to take care of each other, then the children who grow up in this environment will naturally know how to love, understand, and bring happiness to others. The most precious inheritance that parents can give their children is their own happiness. Our parents may be able to leave us money, houses, and land, but they may not be happy people. If we have happy parents, we have received the richest inheritance of all.
#thich_nhat_hanh
If our parents didn’t love and understand each other, how are we to know what love looks like? There aren’t courses or classes in love. If the grown-ups know how to take care of each other, then the children who grow up in this environment will naturally know how to love, understand, and bring happiness to others. The most precious inheritance that parents can give their children is their own happiness. Our parents may be able to leave us money, houses, and land, but they may not be happy people. If we have happy parents, we have received the richest inheritance of all.
#thich_nhat_hanh
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Haemin Sunim
Love is
trusting someone,
being there for someone,
being ready to listen with a tender heart
for no other reason than love.
At times we are not sure
whether what we feel is love.
At that moment, ask yourself this:
“Am I happy to give more even after having given a lot?”
If the answer is yes, and there is no regret afterward,
then that is probably love.
Love is
trusting someone,
being there for someone,
being ready to listen with a tender heart
for no other reason than love.
At times we are not sure
whether what we feel is love.
At that moment, ask yourself this:
“Am I happy to give more even after having given a lot?”
If the answer is yes, and there is no regret afterward,
then that is probably love.
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❝BODY, AFTER ALL THE PLEASURES THAT IT HAS HAD, WILL FINALLY TURN INTO ASHES. GIVE PLEASURE TO YOURSELF, NOT TO THE BODY. ❞
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Acharya Prashant
All choices are aimed towards happiness. So, if you are asking whether it is a choice to be happy, the answer really is that all choices are made so that one may be happy. Even if you choose to be unhappy, in some way your happiness lies in being unhappy.
Every single choice that the mind makes is in the direction of happiness—the perceived direction of happiness. ‘This is what I think would make me happy, so I choose this. This is what I think would make me unhappy, so I reject it.’ So choice and happiness are in the same domain. Do you see how closely they are together?
You choose happiness. All right, that is what the intention is—to choose happiness. But what is it that happens? In spite of choosing happiness, deciding to be happy, trying to be happy, putting in efforts to be happy, does one remain happy? We choose happiness and we do not necessarily get happiness. Even if we do get happiness, does that happiness last? Is that your experience? Does the happiness become permanent?
All choices are aimed towards happiness. So, if you are asking whether it is a choice to be happy, the answer really is that all choices are made so that one may be happy. Even if you choose to be unhappy, in some way your happiness lies in being unhappy.
Every single choice that the mind makes is in the direction of happiness—the perceived direction of happiness. ‘This is what I think would make me happy, so I choose this. This is what I think would make me unhappy, so I reject it.’ So choice and happiness are in the same domain. Do you see how closely they are together?
You choose happiness. All right, that is what the intention is—to choose happiness. But what is it that happens? In spite of choosing happiness, deciding to be happy, trying to be happy, putting in efforts to be happy, does one remain happy? We choose happiness and we do not necessarily get happiness. Even if we do get happiness, does that happiness last? Is that your experience? Does the happiness become permanent?
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"Wishing you a year filled with spiritual growth, love, and positivity! May this new year bring you closer to your inner self and the wisdom of the universe. Happy New Year from @spiritualbooks 🙏✨"
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A warrior considers it his foremost concern to keep death in mind at all times, every day and every night… As long as you keep death in mind at all times, you will fulfill the ways of loyalty, avoid myriad evils and calamities, be physically sound and healthy, and live a long life. What is more, your character will improve and your virtue will grow.
—Taira Shigesuke
—Taira Shigesuke
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