No Doubts

He who knows himself has no doubts about it.
Nor does he care whether others recognize his state or not.

Nisargadatta Maharaj

What the Hell

It comes as a shattering blow. It hits you
like a thunderbolt. You have invested in
self-realization, and, in the end, suddenly
you discover that there is no self to discover,
no self to realize - and you say to yourself,
"What the hell have I been doing all my life?"

UG Krishnamurti

Sorrow Prepares You

Sorrow prepares you for joy. It violently sweeps everything out of your house, so that new joy can find space to enter. It shakes the yellow leaves from the bough of your heart so that fresh, green leaves can grow in their place. It pulls up the rotten roots so that new roots hidden beneath have room to grow. Whatever sorrow shakes from your heart, far better things will take their place.

Jalāl al-Dīn Rumi

What Our Soul Intends

The notion that we can be anything we want to be
is unwise as well as untrue. In this world, we are
fortunate if we turn out to be something close
to what our soul intends us to be.

Michael Meade

Happiness

Happiness is a butterfly, which, when pursued,
is always just beyond your grasp, but which,
if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you.

Nathaniel Hawthorne

Hell

Hell, in my opinion, is never finding your true self
and never living your own life or knowing who you are.

John Bradshaw

Last Words

Is everybody OK?

Robert F. Kennedy (after being shot)

Just Part of It All

I was no longer needing to be special because
I was no longer caught up in my puny separateness
that had to keep proving I was something. I was
part of the universe, like a tree is, or like grass is,
or like water is. Like storms, like roses.
I was just part of it all.

Ram Dass

Remember Us

Remember us, if at all, not as lost
Violent souls, but only
As the hollow men,
The stuffed men.

T. S. Eliot

Full Manhood

When the moment calls for fierceness,

nobody fucks with you. And when

the moment calls for tenderness,

you are not tender. You are very,

very tender. And a great Warrior knows

which is which.

Maasai Tribal Elder (as told by Terrence Real)

She Creates a Genius

When nature has work to be done,
she creates a genius to do it.

Ralph Waldo Emerson 

Loving Maleness

To create loving men, we must love males.
Loving maleness is different from praising
and rewarding males for living up to
sexist-defined notions of male identity.
Caring about men because of what they do
for us is not the same as loving males
for simply being. When we love maleness,
we extend our love whether males are

performing or not.

bell hooks

Hundreds of Ways

Today, like every other day,

we wake up empty and frightened.

Don't open the door to the study and

begin reading. Take down a musical instrument.

Let the beauty we love be what we do.

There are hundreds of ways

to kneel and kiss the ground.

Jalāl al-Dīn Rumi

The Common Ground of Life

We each stand on the common ground of life
with our own way of being present and our own
once-in-a-lifetime chance at becoming the person
we are intended to be.

Michael Meade

Like All Times

This time, like all times,
is a very good one, if we
but know what to do with it.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Be Yourself

Be yourself, because
everyone else is taken.

Oscar Wilde

Can You Imagine?

Imagine looking at us from the outside.
Can you imagine a planet that believes
in what does not exist, only in images
in their mind?

Byron Katie

The Process of Growth

The process of growth is, it seems, the art of falling down. Growth is measured by the gentleness and awareness with which we once again pick ourselves up, the lightness with which we dust ourselves off, the openness with which we continue and take the next unknown step, beyond our edge, beyond our holding, into the remarkable mystery of being.

Stephen Levine

A Victory

To be alive
to hear this song
is a victory.

West African Song

Vulnerability

Vulnerability is our most accurate
measurement of courage.

Brene Brown

Look for God

You always look for God
in high places.
Guess again.

Ram Tzu

Reflection

The reflection in the mirror
is only made of mirror.

Darryl Bailey

It Does Not Know You

But if a mirror ever makes you sad, you
should know that it does not know you.

Kabir

Travel the Road Yourself

Buddha left a road map.
Jesus left a road map.
Krishna left a road map.
Rand McNally left a road map.
But you still have to travel the road yourself.

Stephen Levine

Healing

To heal is to touch with love that
which was previously touched by fear.

Stephen Levine 

Close to the Ground

In dwelling, live close to the ground.

In thinking, keep to the simple.

In conflict, be fair and generous.

In governing, don't try to control.

In work, do what you enjoy.

In family life, be completely present.

Lao Tzu

See Peace

I could see peace
instead of this.

A Course in Miracles, Lesson 34

Stupid and Destructive

Trying to establish your masculinity,
your manhood, as our culture defines it,
will tend to make you stupid and destructive.

John Biewen

Never Upset

I am never upset
for the reason I think.

A Course in Miracles, Lesson 5