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September 09, 2009 03:34 AM PDT
And a man said, Speak to us of Self-Knowledge.
And he answered saying:
Your hearts know in silence the secrets of the days and the nights.
But your ears thirst for the sound of your heart's knowledge.
You would know in words that which you have always known in thought.
You would touch with your fingers the naked body of your dreams.
And it is well you should.
The hidden well-spring of your soul must needs rise and run murmuring to the sea;
And the treasure of your infinite depths would be revealed to your eyes.
But let there be no scales to weigh your unknown treasure;
And seek not the depths of your knowledge with staff or sounding line.
For self is a sea boundless and measureless.
Say not, "I have found the truth," but rather, "I have found a truth."
Say not, "I have found the path of the soul." Say rather, "I have met the soul walking upon my path."
For the soul walks upon all paths.
The soul walks not upon a line, neither does it grow like a reed.
The soul unfolds itself, like a lotus of countless petals
THEN said a teacher, Speak to us of Teaching.
And he said:
No man can reveal to you aught but that
which already lies half asleep in the dawning
of your knowledge.
The teacher who walks in the shadow of the
temple, among his followers, gives not of his
wisdom but rather of his faith and his lovingness.
If he is indeed wise he does not bid you enter
the house of his wisdom, but rather leads you to
the threshold of your own mind.
The astronomer may speak to you of his under-
standing of space, but he cannot give you his
understanding.
The musician may sing to you of the rhythm
which is in all space, but he cannot give you the
ear which arrests the rhythm nor the voice that
echoes it.
And he who is versed in the science of numbers
can tell of the regions of weight and measure, but
he cannot conduct you thither.
For the vision of one man lends not its wings to
another man.
And even as each one of you stands alone in
God's knowledge, so must each one of you be alone
in his knowledge of God and his understanding of the earth
AND a youth said, Speak to us of Friendship.
And he answered, saying:
Your friend is your needs answered.
He is your field which you sow with love
and reap with thanksgiving.
And he is your board and your fireside.
For you come to him with your hunger,
and you seek him for peace.
When your friend speaks his mind you
fear not the "nay" in your own mind, nor
do you withhold the "ay."
And when he is silent your heart ceases
not to listen to his heart;
For without words, in friendship, all
thoughts, all desires, all expectations are born
and shared, with joy that is unacclaimed.
When you part from your friend, you
grieve not;
For that which you love most in him may
be clearer in his absence, as the mountain
to the climber is clearer from the plain.
And let there be no purpose in friend-
ship save the deepening of the spirit.
For love that seeks aught but the dis-
closure of its own mystery is not love but
a net cast forth: and only the unprofitable
is caught.
And let your best be for your friend.
If he must know the ebb of your tide,
let him know its flood also.
For what is your friend that you should
seek him with hours to kill?
Seek him always with hours to live.
For it is his to fill your need, but not
your emptiness.
And in the sweetness of friendship let
there be laughter, and sharing of pleasures.
For in the dew of little things the heart
finds its morning and is refreshed.
http://Activeenglishspeaking.com
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