It is difficult to do something we dislike. In order to be drawn to something and work with it, we have to love it. When you are hungry, you love food; you do not need to be told to go and look for something to eat in the cupboard or in the ...
...ng of life finally becomes clear to you. But after these moments of intense life, you allow your thoughts and conversations to drift back to ordinary things, and within minutes you lose all that you had gained.
So, in future, pay attention and ...
You have no desire to live a spiritual life? Fine, understood. But you can still make the effort to understand intellectually that there are advantages to living this way. And once you have understood the benefits, you will find it easier to commit ...
Now that you have set foot on the divine path, you must continue walking it tirelessly. For those who do not stop on the path, the obstacles ahead disperse one by one, for they will have set the powerful laws of life in motion. The spiritual life is ...
It is almost useless to commit to a spiritual path unless you have understood just how tough a human's lower nature is, how hard it is to tame and just how much work is required, needing vigilance, humility and perseverance. Far too many people ...
Even the most talented beings in the world cannot achieve anything without practising several hours every day, and often from childhood, to develop their talents. Work is the only thing that can achieve results. And this is even truer in the ...
The spiritual life does not require the amassing of a large amount of knowledge. The main thing in the spiritual life is practice. It is not good to read and study without ever trying to achieve anything or give concrete expression to it. Obviously, ...
No one will deny that all the human beings inhabiting the earth are alive. Even if they are only leading a life that is vegetative and instinctive, they are alive. And most also have an emotional, feeling life or even an intellectual life. But ...
The spiritual life is like a soil you must bury yourself in if you are to grow. Until then you will be like grain left in a granary. In the granary, of course, it is undisturbed; it is not subject to rain or wind or hail, but it will soon rot or be ...
Now that you have set foot on the divine path, you must keep walking it tirelessly. The obstacles ahead disperse, one by one, when you keep going, for you will have set the powerful laws of life in motion.The spiritual life is like climbing a high ...
It is almost pointless embarking on the spiritual life so long as you have not understood just how tough the lower nature is and how demanding the work is you have to undertake, in terms of vigilance, steadfastness, humility and selflessness. Far ...
Many embark on the spiritual life without assessing any of the difficulties involved and wanting to undertake great things straightaway. And that is bound to end in accidents or disappointments. If you try to jump over a great, wide precipice ...
'I am waiting until I've settled all my material affairs, and then I shall be able to devote myself to spiritual life.' That's something I have often heard. And then, what do I reply? That it's impossible. Why? Because material affairs are like a ...
Many people find the idea of the spiritual life frightening, as they are under the impression that they will be throwing themselves into the void. Obviously, throwing oneself into the void is frightening and dangerous, but only for those whose wings ...
Don't imagine that heaven will be so thrilled to see you become a member of a Church or another spiritual movement that it will come to make life easy for you and spare you trials. No, whether you are spiritual or materialistic, you will come up ...
Someone says: ‘Before I commit myself to the spiritual life, I want irrefutable proof of the existence of God and the invisible entities, of the immortality of the spirit and of life after death.' Oh dear! This person will have to wait a very long ...
Of course, it is difficult to live the spiritual life. Given the nature of the goal to be attained, it is impossible to reach it without effort, and all the more so because the routes leading to it are not well travelled. These paths are unused and ...
The most gifted people in the world are successful only because they have practised several hours a day, every day, often since childhood, in order to develop their talents. Work and work alone brings results, and this is even truer for the ...
The purpose of the spiritual life is to give birth to the divine principle in our soul. But to give birth to this child, everyone must be both man and woman, father and mother. As a father, they trigger the process of conception, and as a mother, ...
When disciples sincerely embrace the spiritual life, it doesn't matter to them whether or not people know about their work; they are not interested in playing a role or letting others know what they are doing. The only thing that counts for them is ...
It happens that when a man sees a woman embracing the spiritual life in order to perfect herself, rather than rejoicing, he tries to stop her. He does not understand that if his wife becomes inwardly rich, he too will benefit. The same is true for a ...
The spiritual life is difficult, and can even be a risky adventure. Given the nature of the goal to be attained, it is impossible to reach it without effort, especially as the paths leading to it are not well travelled. These are untouched and steep ...
When mountaineers set out to climb a peak, they do not ask the guide who is leading them to keep looking back at them. Well, the spiritual life is like the ascent of a high peak, and you must not ask your Master to turn round and look back. Your ...
Although it is true that human beings need instructors to keep them from going astray, it is also true that once they are informed and enlightened, it is up to them to set to work and experience things for themselves.Let us take a very simple ...
So many people have come to me and said, ‘Why did I find your teaching so late in life? I have spent my whole life in doubt and error, and now not only is it too late to undo my mistakes, but it is too late to really start a new life.' It is true ...
Novices in the spiritual life often plunge headlong into schemes that are too ambitious, and this inevitably leads to accidents or disillusionment. If at your first attempt you try to jump a chasm that is too wide, you will fall in and by the time ...
Few people understand how important it is to keep themselves free for an enterprise, for work of a heavenly nature. They are always in a hurry to commit themselves, to become wedded to the world, and as the world is very heavy and terribly demanding,...
People sometimes complain, ‘Since I decided to change my way of life and follow a spiritual teaching, I have been miserable.' But were they really happy before? No, I do not think so. On the face of it, yes, perhaps, because those who never exert ...