If you want to find an example to follow, you should look among simple, humble folk. There is real greatness only in those who do not advertise themselves, and who do not understand themselves as great.
The feeling of compassion for other living beings reminds me of the feeling of pain in our body. Just as you can become less sensitive to pain in your body with time, you can become less compassionate to others.
The first condition to bringing religion into your life is manifesting love and pity toward all living creatures.
Every murder is terrible. But most terrible is the murder in which you want to eat the creature you have killed, when you kill for the satisfaction of your stomach.
When the suffering of another creature causes you to feel pain, do not submit to the initial desire to flee from the suffering one, but on the contrary, come closer, as close as you can to him who suffers, and try to help him.
Love is the manifestation of the divine nature which exists above time. Love is not only a way of life, it is an action directed toward the goodness of others.
There is no love in the future. Love can exist only in the present moment. A man who does not manifest love in the present does not love at all.
Be kind even if the world blames you. It is better than the converse when a person is praised by others but continues to be bad.
The New Testament reflects a very simple faith: faith in God and respect for Him. It is the same in following the law; there is only one law: love your neighbor.
Certainly, it is painful to recall all the things which you could have done in the past but did not: some charity, for example; a time you denied to those who expected help from you; or when you blocked the joyful understanding of completing an action you should have finished.
Faith is not true faith if love is not in harmony with it.
The door to heaven is opened to you to the same extent you want it. Get rid of your troubles and problems, and direct your soul to spiritual things. Be attentive, and fulfill your duty without thinking about the consequences. You should not guide events, but be guided by events.
If you were abused, make an effort to love those who have abused you. If you have abused someone, make an effort to correct the evil which you created.
When one understands life’s law, one manifests the part of God which lives inside him.
Every man, from the king to the poorest pauper, should seek his own perfection, because only self-perfection improves mankind.
In the long run, people achieve only that which they have set as goals for themselves; therefore, set the highest possible goals for yourself.
The fulfillment of the law of goodness has nothing in common with everyday material prosperity. Sometimes material prosperity and moral goodness clash in conflict. These sufferings lead to the highest elevation of spirit.
Sometimes we cannot see any connection between our suffering and our sin, but this connection definitely exists.
“I was repaid with evil for the goodness which I have done.” But if you love those for whom you did good, then you have already received your reward. Therefore, all that you do with love, you do for yourself.
The reward for virtue is the understanding of the good deed.
Look for the causes of the evil from which you suffer in yourself. Sometimes this evil is the direct consequence of your activity; sometimes it happens after a lengthy period of transformation of an evil which you committed long ago. But the source is always in you, and salvation from it lies in changes in your actions, your way of life.
