Worth Repeating

"The world is not imperfect, or slowly evolving along a long path to perfection. No, it is perfect at every moment; every sin already carries grace within it, all small children are potential old men, all sucklings have death within them, all dying people – eternal life. It is not possible for one person to see how far another is on the way; the Buddha exists in the robber and dice player; the robber exists in the Brahmin. During deep meditation it is possible to dispel time, to see simultaneously all the past, present, and future, and then everything is good, everything is perfect, everything is Brahman. Therefore it seems to me that everything that exists is good – death as well as life, sin as well as holiness, wisdom as well as folly. Everything is necessary, everything needs only my agreement, my assent, my loving understanding; then all is well with me and nothing can harm me. I learned through my body and soul that it was necessary for me to sin, that I needed lust, that I had to strive for property and experience nausea and the depths of despair in order to learn not to resist them, in order to learn to love the world, and no longer compare it with some kind of desired imaginary world, some imaginary vision of perfection, but to leave it as it is, to love it, and to be glad to belong to it."

-- Herman Hesse, "Siddhartha"

Comments

[Corilee]

That's a favoured quote - and you introduced it to me first! Thanks for reminding me and happy new year.

[Julie Desjardins]

That's what I was going to say! You were the one who incitated me to read Siddhartha a while ago... Beautiful quote.

Funny how that's two mentions of Herman Hesse that I come across today. Maybe it's time to read it again (I really enjoyed reading Narcisse and Goldmund when I was in college, too)?

[nancy]

your blog was mentioned in my online yoga group. it's such a good read, i had to ration myself in reading it to make it last as long as possible. i hope you continue to add to it.
i particularly appreciate how you always feel like a beginner. to my beginner eyes you appear to be a dedicated and accomplished yogi. i imagine to some people i look to be further along the path than i feel i am.

[Chanel J12]

Thanks for such a great post and the review, It's really impressed

[HipHop]

What an all around good post!